Articles By Jack Cush, MD
Selective Use of HLA-B*5801 Testing in Gout
The current edition of JAMA Internal Medicine describes an Asian gout patient who presents with an allopurinol hypersensitivity reaction that could have been diagnosed by testing for HLA-B*5801.
Read Article
Febuxostat (IR or XR) Effective in Gout with Renal Impairment
Saag and colleagues report the results of a 3 month phase III trial demonstrating equal efficacy between febuxostat extended release (XR) and immediate release (IR) formulations in patients with gout. and normal or impaired renal function.
Read Article
Back Pain in Psoriatic Arthritis
A single center study of psoriatic arthritis patients has shown that rheumatologist-judged inflammatory back pain (IBP) and criteria defining IBP may not perform well when ascertaining axial involvement in PsA patients.
Read Article
Higher Infection Rates for Infliximab in Psoriasis
A prospective study of psoriasis patients from the British Association of Dermatologists Biologic Interventions Register demonstrated that infliximab therapy yielded 2-3 times more serious infection than seen in those treated with non-biologic DMARDs or methotrexate (MTX).
Read Article
The RheumNow Week in Review – Handshakes or Hugs (8.3.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and highlights from the past week on RheumNow.com, including new treatments for LTBI, gout consequences, RA and offspring risk, PsA risk, and the opioid epidemic effects.
Read Article
Maternal RA Increases Offspring Risk of Autoimmune Disorders
A Danish population study suggests that fetal exposure to maternal rheumatoid arthritis results in an increased offspring risk of thyroid disease, epilepsy and RA, compared to children born to mothers without RA.
Read Article
Opioid Aversion is Augmenting Spinal Steroid Injections
As physicians turn away from opioids, are they resorting to options that may also be unsafe?The New York Times reports that some physicians are using the anti-inflammatory drug, Depo-Medrol, for intraspinal injections to manage painful spinal and perispinal disorders.
Read Article
Company Payments to Rheumatologists, Specialists Linked to Increased ACTH Prescriptions
Despite its exorbitant price tag and paucity of supportive clinical evidence, ACTH (corticotropin) sales have increased in the United States. A recent JAMA article examined its use by specialists and found that those who prescribe ACTH (including rheumatologists, nephrologists, neurologists) received corticotropin-related payments from the products sole manufacturer, Mallinckrod.
Read Article
Statin Associated with an Increase in Inflammatory Myopathy
JAMA Internal Medicine reports that exposure to statin medications may be linked to histologically confirmed idiopathic inflammatory myositis.
Read Article
Type I Interferon Drives Photosensitivity in Cutaneous Lupus
Kahlenberg and coworkers have reported in ARD that interferon kappa (IFN-κ) is a key regulator of type I interferon (IFN) photosensitive responses in patients with cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE).
Read Article
